Who's the Mutt Now?
by Hergan
Summary: Anubis doesn't think Seto Kaiba is a worthy reincarnation of the previous Pharaoh, and ends up turning him into a puppy. What happens when he is rescuted by Jounouchi? Wishshipping, maybe puppyshipping (though puppyshipping may end up platonic.)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Instead of working on anything that I've started, I obviously need a new WIP. So here. WARNING: THIS FIC HAS SOME VIOLENT SCENES, STARTING IN THIS CHAPTER. IF YOU ARE SQUEEMISH ABOUT OR TRIGGERED BY OR OTHERWISE NOT INCLINED TO READ VIOLENCE, PLEASE DO NOT CONTINUE.**

Seto rolled over for the upteenth time, the sheets and covers long since tossed off his body. Sweat glared on his forhead, matting his bangs in place, a harsh contrast to the goosebumps covering his legs as he shivered uncontrollably. He moaned a little in his sleep as he grasped out for something, anything, and found purchase on an extra pillow. He curled around it protectively, holding it as though his life depended on it. Mokuba, asleep in the next room, had no idea how much trouble his brother was in.

* * *

He reached an arm above his head, only to be stopped by the pull of a chain, the scraping of metal against stone grating on the ears. He blinked open his eyes to a dark room, the only light being two torches set up at the base of a throne. Upon the throne sat his dopleganger, only now he wore fancier robes of gold and blue, the intricate patterns matching the design of the crown upon his head. At his waist was the familliar Millenium Rod, but around his neck was the Millennium Puzzle, the sign that Kaiba was before the feet of the Pharaoh.

A dark figure approached from behind the throne, and soon the light illuminated his silhouette. Although humanoid, the man had a dog's face, turned impossibly to the side. "Pharaoh, your embalming was not ritualized correctly, and this _thing_ became your reincarnation." A pair of golden scales and a feather appeared. "Shall I judge him now so that my father's namesake can begin his life anew?"

Kaiba turned to face Anubis, a glare present on his face. "How would a loser of a God judge me?" he spitefully returned. "Even if you were real, your domain is of the dead. I am quite alive, despite these fever dreams."

Anubis chuckled. "You shall pass into my domain soon enough, boy. I can feel your presence coming to me already."

Kaiba snarled. "Never," he warned. With every ounce of will in his body, he strained against the chains, and suddenly they broke with a flash of light.

He was up in a second, attempting to run away, and so a spell was all that Anubis could get off. He fired at Kaiba's back, and the other crumpled into a heap, hit dead on with the curse. The god turned to the Pharaoh to apologize but saw deep understanding in the other's eyes.

Whether it was Anubis' or the Pharaoh's voice Kaiba heard before he woke, he didn't know. All he knew were the words, "That should teach him."

* * *

The first thing he noticed when he woke up was the smell. Sour, but sweet, the smell of rotting apples, he thought. Why would I be around rotting apples? he thought, blinking his eyes open to see what was going on. The blue dumpster in front of him looked muted, and the rest of the allyway was a weird sepia color, full of tan and yellow. An impossibly loud bang from his right resulted in him snapping his head in that direction, and he saw another blue dumpster being emptied into a blue garbage truck. He went to rub his eyes, thinking there was something wrong with them, only to realize that he couldn't reach, and that his hands refused to ball.

This had to be the worst migraine in the world. He tried to moan and was surprised when it came out as a whimper. _What the hell is going on?_ he wondered, trying to determine why his mouth would make that sound. It sounded pathetic, and dog-like. He was Seto Kaiba. He never whimpered.

He opened his mouth to call for Mokuba and the resulting bark had him jumping to his feet rapidly. He barely registered that he was on all fours, being too surprised by the revelation to do anything about it. _Why did I just **bark**?_ he wondered.

Crunching gravel sounded loudly from his left and he saw a huge figure walking towards him. He could smell everything about him, that he had some sort of cheap colonge on, that he was already sweating through the smell of cheap soaps and deoderant (appropriately masculine in scent), that he had recently passed gas, and that he was a smoker. The man's skin was almost a gray color, his hair a faded brown, his clothes a washed away blue. And he was blurry, just like everything else around Seto.

"Come here, puppy," came a scratchy voice, and Seto stared at him in terror. Was he a _dog_?

He could feel the back of his neck prickling, and an unbidden growl escaped his throat as the man continued to approach. That was fine with Seto. The last thing he wanted was the man thinking that he could pet him.

He backed away and frowned. "Hey Stan," he called back towards the front of the truck. "We might need to call animal control, there seems to be a lost puppy here. Musta been getting scraps from the dumpster."

That offended Seto. He would never eat anything coming from a dumpster, even in this form. He growled some more in displeasure. The man raised his hands and backed away, looking to his side.

Seto could hear the faint sound of a dialtone and realized that this 'Stan' was following through with the stranger's suggestion. He froze for a second, unsure what to do. Then he realized that if he wanted to reunite with Mokuba, or even stay alive, the pound would not be the place to do it. So he barked in warning and charged his left, running away from the man.

The world he was running through was unfamilliar. It seemed from the smell of things he was now running down a line of restaurants, just opening for the morning. But none of it was recognizable. He could barely read the signs, even though they were in huge letters, perhaps because the contrast was off.

It wasn't like the signs he _could_ read were all that familliar anyway.

He stopped running in front of a cafe, panting and out of breath. Intense concentration showed that the name of the establishment was "J. Z. 's." He tried to stop panting, but his body wouldn't allow him. It was pathetic.

Loud crunching alerted him to the group of six people heading toward the cafe before he saw them. He could have run again, but by now was exhausted and not willing to do so. He slunk back against the side of the building, hoping to not be noticed.

"Hey look, a mutt," one said, pointing. Seto bristled. Not only was he spotted, but he was no mutt! He was Seto Kaiba! He growled unconsciously.

"Look, it thinks it's tough," said another, approaching Seto. Now he was growling consciously.

"Should we teach it a lesson?" asked a third, looking to a fourth, as though he were the leader.

The other smiled cruel and calculating. "Yes," he replied. Seto wasn't used to being on the receiving end of such a smile, but he recognized it immediately. These people were cruel.

He tried to will his body to run away, but he was surrounded on all sides and it was too tired to actually evade the group of humans. He was scooped up by a pair of strong hands then dropped unceremoniously against the wall, surrounded on all sides. Before he could really get his footing, a foot connected with his side, kicking him into the wall. His head bounced off and his vision blurred even more than it had initially. A yelp escaped his mouth.

The yelp was pathetic and Seto concentrated on making no more noise. If Gozoboro had been any indicator, making noise would only edge the boys on.

For now that seemed right. The leader seemed pleased with the noise and had gone in to kick Seto himself. The blow landed squarely on Seto's nose and he smarted. He could feel something wet dripping down his snout and he whined. Why couldn't he control these noises? He was so good at it as a human.

"Let's skin him alive," suggested the leader, grinning maddly and picking him up by the scruff of his neck. Seto growled. He didn't like this, and he could understand the words. The boys flicked open their knives and began advancing. "I get the first cut," he claimed, handing Seto to the boy to his left.

Seto tried to bite the new person, finally having access, only to feel the knife cutting into something really sensitive on his hindquarters. He yowled in pain and turned his head, noticing a giant cut in his tail. A second strike and the tail was severed, the bone separated by an expert flick off the knife. Blood gushed from the wound, and Seto passed out.


	2. Chapter 2

Jounouchi walked back towards the subway station from his father's house. The route unfortunately went right past J.Z.'s, the cafe that was still the headquarters of Hirutani's gang. The guys from Rintama were surprisingly resilient, and had bounced back even after their warehouse had caught fire when Yami had figured out that they had kidnapped Jou.

At least he only had to contend with memories when he went past the building. They were too chickenshit to do anything to him again, but it didn't stop them from terrorizing the rest of the community.

A yelp attracted Jounouchi's attention, and he noticed a group of Hirutani's thugs, and Hirutani himself, standing in a circle around a dog. It had patches of gray and brown fur, but a white belly. He didn't look like any recognizable breed, though he he seemed like he would grow up to be very large; he still had puppy paws but was already bigger most small breeds.

The distressed noises continued, as Jounouchi was a bit too far away to do more than watch as the dog was tortured. As soon as he had approached, however, he was punching the nearest one, in his anger hardly noticing that the puppy had gone silent. The first punch caught the other boy off guard. But immediately the circle of six teens rounded on Jounouchi, the unconscious dog dropped unceremoniously on the ground.

Jou faced Hirutani with hatred in his eyes. He noted the bloodstained knife as he dodged the blows from the two nearest boys, landing an uppercut on a third, and charging the gang's leader.

Hirutani faced Jou with the knife in hand, attempting to stab Jou in the chest as his momentum carried him forward. Jou blocked with his arm, the knife slicing into skin, pushed aside from the vital areas. His block left a bit of a gap in Hirutani's defenses, and Jou tried to press his advantage by swinging with his right fist. Hirutani blocked in response and pulled the knife back, both taking up defensive postures and waiting for the other's next move.

Unfortunately for Jou, it was more than just Hirutani he had to worry about. A burly teen with a shaved head attacked him from behind, picking him up and throwing him over his shoulder. "Boss, we've got two mutts to deal with now," he chortled, before Jou hit him on the head, hard, and he crumpled.

Hirutani flicked a second knife open in his left hand and started approaching Jou. "You dare attack us and defy our truce?" he demanded, even though no such thing had been decided.

"You dare tell me what to do?" Jou questioned back, his fist swinging for Hirutani's eye. Hirutani tried blocking, but was a bit slow, and Jou's blow connected. The follow-up to the leader's gut connected as well, and he doubled over.

Jou was not going to last much longer, however. He could feel the pain in his arm and knew adrenaline would not last forever. So he searched for the dog, hoping it had gotten away, and saw it's unconscious form. He had to supress rage as he picked it up carefully and began to run. Getting the dog to safety was more important than getting revenge on the thugs.

Hirutani's gang began to give chase until a winded "stop" sounded behind them. "It's not worth it." Who needed the chance of burning alive over a dog?

When Jounouchi finally slowed, he was in the district west of his dad's place, far from the subway station. Currently he was on a block full of houses and not much else. He needed to find a stip of stores so that he could try and get the dog some medical attention. It needed it badly.

He headed in a direction, not entirely familiar with this part of town, and ended up on a strip full of diners and clubs. He was attracting weird looks, and the pain in his arm was becoming more and more persistent. He bit his lip for something else to concentrate on, and pressed on. Finally he reached what seemed to be a doctor's office. He glanced at it in surprise, grateful for its existence, walked up the short sidewalk lined in flowers, and reached to pull the door.

It was closed.

He sighed and leaned heavily against the door, sliding down until he was sitting on the sidewalk. He clutched the dog to his chest and closed his eyes, unable to keep the pain under control now that he was no longer in danger. His grip on the dog loosened and he fainted. He barely heard the footsteps of the first employee arriving as he went out.

* * *

Darkness. "Anubis!" an accusing voice shouted. And then sand. Blowing, a storm was brewing and the particles made it hard to see.

Jou became aware of his own form, present in the middle of the storm, but somehow untouched.

"My son made a mistake. My namesake is not a problem. He is a wrench in plans, as terrifying as the wind, and as stubborn as an ox. But he is not a disgrace to my name, nor as Seto's reincarnate."

A figure appeared, shadowy against the sand, humanoid, a head like no animal Jou had ever seen before. "You shall help my namesake escape my son's curse. I give him another chance."

The puppy from before appeared and Jou saw it's breath rising and falling. A long rod, appeared in Set's hands, touching the dog on the head and a flash of light engulfed him.

"Learn to differentiate when chaos is yours, and you shall return to your true form."

The sands faded and the figure disappeared. Everything was blackness.

* * *

Stinging. It was the first thing he was aware of. The second was the softness he didn't expect under his body. The third, bright light as he opened his eyes.

He sat up rapidly. "Where's the dog?"

The nurse changing his dressing looked at him and shook her head, bemused. "He was taken to the animal hospital. We haven't heard anything since then."

Jounouchi's throat felt dry. "Please, he has to be ok."

The nurse shook her head. "I can't give you any more information about the dog. You need to worry about you right now. The doctors had to give you a blood transfusion and several stitches. You fainted due to blood loss. You need to focus on your recovery."

Jounouchi's face fell. This all sounded expensive and time consuming. Was he at Domino General? He growled, taking his frustration out on the nurse. "That's not good enough!"

The nurse smiled sadly at him. "We'll let you know as soon as we hear something about him. For now, try and get some rest."

With a last bit of tape, she let go of Jounouchi's arm and let it fall gently to his side. Then she walked away and closed the door, turning off the light in the room to make a point. Jounouchi sighed in frustration.

He wasn't ready to fall asleep. He wasn't ready for much of anything, honestly. He just knew he had to get back to that dog. Left alone to his thoughts he began to ponder the dream, and hoped more than anything that the dog was alright. The dog was important in his dream, he justified. It was cursed unfairly, and had a chance at redemption. Even if it did seem that Kaiba was the person treated unfairly in this instance, he felt he still deserved a chance.

It was with this thought that he decided he needed to leave the hospital as soon as possible. He stood and stalked over to the door, poking his head out. He was still hooked up to an IV machine, and he groaned when he saw no one there. He at least wanted to sign the papers to get discharged early.

He began to wander down the hall, looking for someone to help him.


	3. Chapter 3

An unfamiliar number flashed on the screen, the chiming tone breaking the silence in Yugi's room. He sighed and walked over to the cell, plugged into the wall, and answered it. He needed a break from studying anyway.

"Is this Moutou Yugi?" came a female voice on the other end.

"Yes," he replied, more confidently that he might have a few years before. While he still didn't enjoy the spotlight, over the years he had grown more accustomed to fans, and he guessed this might be one.

The theory was squashed instantly. "It says here you are the emergency contact for Jounouchi Katsuya, is that correct?"

"That is correct," he replied, his mouth dry.

"I am calling on his behalf; he is currently recovering from several stitches and a blood transfusion at Domino General."

"What happened?" Yugi asked, worry sounding in his voice. He was already pulling the phone from the cord and walking downstairs.

While Yugi put his shoes on the lady on the other end answered, "We're not entirely sure. He was unconscious in front of a doctor's clinic when he was found, along with a puppy who was in equally bad shape."

Yugi blinked. What was Jounouchi doing with a puppy?

"Any idea when he will wake up?" he asked, the door closing behind him as he left the apartment. He cradled the phone to his shoulder as he locked the door.

"Soon, we believe," the woman on the other end answered. "Though he fainted due to blood loss, he looks much better now that the surgery is over."

Yugi felt sick to his stomach. Jounouchi was seriously hurt. He headed down the stairs two at a time.

"I will be there soon," Yugi assured in a worried tone. The woman on the other end was nothing but professional and he realized that he was mostly assuring himself. He barely noticed as the woman ended the conversation, he was so absorbed in his thoughts.

He tried to tell himself that Jounouchi had pulled through worse. He had managed to wake up from a shadow game-induced coma on his own, something no one else that was affected had done. He also had managed to break Marik's mind control tactics. If anyone was stubborn enough to survive, it was Jounouchi.

But those facts weren't quite enough. The fact of the matter was that his best friend-turned-boyfriend was injured and he couldn't stop worrying. He power-walked down the street, finally breaking into a run as the hospital building came into view.

Panting, he asked the man at the front desk for directions to Jounouchi's room and ran to the elevator. Finally he made it to the right floor.

When he arrived he found Jounouchi arguing with a nurse. He still had an IV attached to his arm, though it looked to just be a saline solution meant to rehydrate, rather than anything more serious. His other arm was heavily wrapped in white bandages.

"I need to check on the dog that was with me, let me go!" Jounouchi was saying. The nurse at the desk had her lips drawn in a tight line.

"I'm afraid that is not recommended, Mr. Jounouchi."

"I don't care what is recommended, I want to leave. I feel fine, now can I-"

Yugi interrupted him there. "Jounouchi," he called, concern sounding in his still-winded voice. "What happened?"

Jounouchi turned from the nurse to Yugi. "I'm fine Yugi. Hirutani was torturing a dog, and he's at the animal hospital right now. I have to check on him," he insisted.

Yugi smiled. If Jounouchi was fighting so hard to take care of something else, he was going to be fine. "But what about you? You are still being treated."

Jounouchi shook his head. "I'm fine Yug'. Besides, this dog needs us."

Yugi shook his head. "You should really stay here. What if something happens to you? I can go look after him if you need me to."

Jounouchi frowned, but nodded his acceptance. "He was taken to the animal hospital. He was in worse shape than me. They cut off his tail." He sounded scared for the dog.

Yugi's eyes widened. "I see why you are so worried. Will they at least get in trouble?" he asked.

Jounouchi shrugged. "I got Hirutani in the gut pretty hard, but otherwise it's kind of hard to prove."

Yugi nodded in understanding and leaned in to give Jounouchi a quick hug. Jounouchi returned it before turning away.

"I suppose I should get back to my room and try to rest then," he sighed. "Call me as soon as you know something about the dog."

Yugi nodded. "Let me walk you back to your room, so I know which one is yours," he replied.

Jounouchi agreed and the two began walking. The nurse shot a grateful look at Yugi's back, which he didn't see, his entire attention focused on Jounouchi, who was worrying aloud.

Once back in the room, Yugi shut the door and gave Jounouchi a more elongated hug. "I'm so glad you are ok," he murmured, kissing Jounouchi's shoulder. Jounouchi slung his good arm around Yugi's shoulder and smiled cockily. "I'm fine Yug'. I know what I'm doing. It's that dog we need to worry about."

Yugi nodded. "I'll get going," he said, turning away from Jou.

Jou grabbed Yugi's shoulder and leaned to whisper in the other's ear. "I had a dream. That dog might be Kaiba," he warned. Yugi's eyes opened in surprise but Jounouchi had leaned away from him and was grinning again. "Go on, help that dog!"

With a confused expression, he headed out, waving to Jounouchi as he left.

* * *

The walk to the animal hospital was slower than his half-run to the Domino General. While he was still concerned about the dog, he was still a little winded, and he didn't think that being in the waiting room for the dog would make much of a difference. So it was after a twenty minute walk that he arrived at the white sterile facility.

As he walked in he spoke to the lady at the front desk, "I'm here about a stray dog that was brought in earlier today, it would have a missing tail?"

The lady nodded. "Ah, that one. Is he yours?"

Yugi shook his head. "Not yet," he joked. "My roommate found some kids hurting him and fought them off. I think that if he doesn't have a home, we were hoping to provide him with one.

The lady chuckled. "You might want to meet the dog first. Ever since he has been awake, all he has done is snarl at the staff. He wouldn't make a very good pet."

"So he pulled through alright?" Yugi asked, hopefully.

"Physically, yes, though it seems that he has had very little exposure to people up until this point. He needs to be de-wormed, so it is doubtful that he has had any vaccinations, and he has fleas all over him. If this was his first encounter with people, it is likely that it will be hard to socialize him."

Yugi sighed. "May I see him?" he requested.

The lady shook her head. "I'm afraid not. He is a liability at this point."

Yugi tried another angle. "How much will his medical expenses be? My friend and I can work on paying them, and on socializing the dog. If he warms up to us, can we keep him?"

The woman pursed her lips. "Will this be your first dog?"

Yugi nodded.

"The likelihood that you will be successful with him is very low. He needs an experienced trainer to help socialize him. The only thing that is going for him is his age. He might still be impressionable enough to be taught to be kind to people."

Yugi sighed again. "Don't you have someone on staff? You have already helped fix him up, so couldn't you help us with that?"

The lady looked at him crossly. "If you can pay for it, we can help. Leave your contact information and someone will call you."

"Ok," he agreed, a bit disappointed. He wrote down his cell number on a piece of paper, and handed it to the clerk. She took the slip of paper and stuck it in an envelope.

"Someone will be in contact with you soon," she replied, dismissing him.

"Thank you for your help," Yugi replied, frustrated. He turned away and left the premises, bringing his phone to his ear to relay the news to Jou.

The receptionist shook her head as she watched Yugi walk out the front doors. He looked way too gentle for a dog like this. She could only hope that his roommate looked like less of a push over, or they would have severe trouble with the dog.

 **A/N:** **I hope that I did Yugi's character justice. I have very little experience writing with or interacting with a Yugi, so this has been a bit of an adventure. Some notes on what I was thinking in terms of his character: I know that Yugi is not a pushover. This is the woman making assumptions about him based on his youthful looks. In fact, I think if she was paying attention, the fact that he is so insistent about this dog would show that he doesn't give up without a fight.**


	4. Chapter 4

Mokuba swung his feet over the bed and padded down to the kitchen. It was seven o'clock, the sun was just rising, and he had about an hour before school. Seto would be long gone, usually rising before sunrise to head into the office, to get some work done before the long day of meetings prevented him from anything else. So it was a surprise to see him in the kitchen with the head chef, looking blankly at a tablet in front of him and pointing to something.

"Good morning Mokuba," Seto said formally, a small smile on his face.

"Mornin' Seto," Mokuba replied sleepily as his brother returned his attention to the chef, and politely nodded. The chef looked as confused as Mokuba felt. Why was his brother here so late, and why was he looking at breakfast? Where was the coffee?

The chef moved away, and rather than relaxing as normal, Seto maintained his stiff posture. Mokuba realized that his brother was dressed in his white suit already, even though he was about to eat and preferred to lounge in something more comfortable unless he had visitors. He also was wearing a blue eyes ring that Mokuba didn't remember seeing before, and mascara as though he was planning on going on television.

Was someone coming over? Perhaps a reporter? It would be strange for someone to come to the house for an interview. Maybe it was for a show like _Cribs_? Free publicity, Mokuba supposed, though there wasn't much in the house to show Seto's personality, and he doubted his brother would like his privacy invaded like that.

Mokuba walked to the fridge and grabbed a glass of ice water before sitting across the table from Seto. "Do I need to get dressed?" he asked. "Do you have people coming over today?"

Seto looked confused. "No?" he replied, steepling his fingers. "What makes you say that?"

Mokuba glanced at his brother. "You ordered breakfast, you aren't at work yet, and you are dressed. Are you sick?" Mokuba looked concerned. He didn't know why his brother would be so stiff and formal if he was sick, but it was the next possible explanation.

Seto shook his head, worry crossing his face, but only for a second. Mokuba wasn't sure where that was coming from. Why would he be worried? And why would he let his brother see it if he was going to hide it right away? He couldn't remember the last time that Seto had showed him such a vulnerable emotion without meaning to.

After a long pause, Seto shrugged and added, "I just feel like it today."

Mokuba sighed. He knew he wouldn't get more out of his brother than that.

He picked up the tablet and deftly ordered rice and eggs, humming as he went. Then it hit him. Even though Seto had designed the system so that he didn't have to interact with the cook, he had been discussing his option directly with him. Mokuba furrowed his eyebrows. What could this all mean?

When the chef came back with the food, he noticed Seto's order contained both rice with natto _and_ miso soup. Seto never ate that much. Figuring his brother just wanted a variety and would pick at the food, he was surprised when his brother took a large bite. And then another.

He was likewise surprised at the grimace that came with the first bite of natto. It was again carefully schooled, as though he didn't intend it to happen. And he kept eating it, even though it seemed to not be up to his standards. The miso soup disappeared much more quickly. And still his brother had not requested coffee.

Mokuba picked at his food, watching his brother warily. He kicked his feet back and forth, not sure what to say. Normally his brother would be easy to converse with, but Seto seemed less than comfortable, on edge, and stiff.

"Do you have a big meeting coming up?" he asked. Perhaps his brother was meeting with someone so important they were intimidating him. It was a long shot though, he hadn't known his brother to be intimidated.

Seto looked at Mokuba. "Maybe. My secretary would tell me when I would have audiences, would she not?"

Mokuba stared at him. He had never left his schedule solely up to his secretary. And since when did he call meetings audiences? "Are you sure you are feeling fine, big brother?" he asked, holding his hand out to feel Seto's forehead. The temperature felt normal, but it still didn't assuage Mokuba's fears. Especially since Seto seemed confused by the action.

Mokuba stood up and decided he was done with his food. He didn't feel like eating when Seto was acting so strangely.

"Do you need me to come into the office with you? You really aren't acting well," he asked one last time.

When Seto assured him that everything was ok, he made up his mind. He needed to call Yugi. If anyone would have an explanation it would be him. He excused himself and left the kitchenette, confusion etched into his face.

* * *

On the third ring, Yugi picked up. "Hello, Moutou Yugi speaking." It was oddly formal of him, and Mokuba had to wonder if he was expecting a call.

"Hey Yugi, it's Mokuba, have you got a moment to talk?"

There was a silence on the other end of the line for a second before Yugi replied easily, "Yeah. What's up?"

It was Mokuba's turn to pause. Was it ok to say this over the telephone? Would someone take advantage of Seto's confusion or see it as weakness?

He shook his head. He had already decided on his course of action, and wasn't going to back out now.

"Is there anything strange going on again?" he asked, deciding that rather than starting in on the changes he had noticed in his brother, he would find out if Yugi even knew anything.

Yugi paused again. "Is Seto missing?" he asked quietly, returning Mokuba's question with a question. The question confused Mokuba even more. He furrowed his brows. Why would his brother be missing?

"No," he said firmly. "At least he looks like he is here. Why?"

Yugi paused again. "No reason, I just thought that you might be calling about him." He seemed relieved. Mokuba glared at the phone suspiciously. It didn't seem Yugi was telling the whole truth.

Mokuba sighed. Yugi had been nothing but trustworthy before. He decided to go for it. "I am. He's here, but he's acting really strange. Eating too much, he's not at work yet, and I see no signs of him drinking excessive amounts of coffee. Not that the last is bad for him, but..." he trailed off.

Yugi intook his breath sharply. "Ah," he replied. "I don't know. Jou had a dream, but beyond that I have no idea. It could honestly have just been a dream," Yugi said, not sounding convinced.

"Tell me what is going on with my brother," Mokuba demanded.

Yugi laughed sheepishly. "Well, if he is right there, Jou's dream can't have been right. In his dream, Seto had been turned into a dog."

Mokuba scoffed. "I can see him with my own eyes. He might be weird, but he is definitely not a dog."

Yugi nodded. "I thought so. In that case, I have no information for you. Maybe he is just trying to change some bad habits?" Yugi suggested.

Mokuba opened his eyes. His brother hadn't mentioned anything about it, but that seemed reasonable. Except why was his brother so reserved about it? Didn't he know he could share anything with Mokuba? Unless that was a bad habit he was trying to break too. Mokuba felt tears prickling in his eyes. Didn't his brother trust him?

"Thanks Yugi," he replied glumly, hanging up the phone without waiting for an answer. Yugi didn't need to see his weakness.


	5. Chapter 5

Dull, throbbing pain; it was the most prevalent sense as he began to blur into consciousness. Slowly he became aware of the scent of wet dogs, each slightly different. It wasn't until he opened his eyes that he realized the dogs weren't wet, it was just the closest approximation that his human brain could come up with because the smell was so strong. Blurred gray steel caged him, keeping from the other dogs. He was completely fine with this; he liked solitude.

A dalmatian puppy in a neighboring kennel stuck his nose out, sniffing at Seto's behind. Immediately he backed away from the edge of his cage and growled, barking at the black and white dog until it began growling back at him. The dalmatian took an aggressive stance and began to bark; Seto took a defensive stance and growled in warning. Other dogs began to chime in for no discernable reason. It wasn't _their_ fight.

"Calm down," came a cheerful female voice, soft footsteps sounding before the blonde lady in a white coat appeared in the hallway.

"Shh shh shh," she calmed, unlocking Seto's cage and reaching towards him as though she thought petting him would help. He growled at her and snapped at her hand. It was rapidly withdrawn and she frowned.

"Now now, that's rude," she admonished, still in that soothing voice. "It's ok."

She stuck her hand back in the cage and Seto growled louder. _Why did she have to be bothering him when all the other dogs were barking too?_

"Are all these other dogs scaring you?" she asked as the hand disappeared again.

Her voice sounded like she was talking to a baby, or something else that couldn't understand her words. He supposed it made sense that she didn't expect him to understand, but he still felt offended.

"I must be scaring you too," she cooed.

He barked at that, hoping she would just _go away_.

She pouted at that. "You better not get jealous," she warned, but her tone once again didn't match the words. The woman was making him angrier the more they interacted. They had people this incompetent working with dogs?

She closed the door to his cage and locked it. Then she started making the same round on all the other dogs. The dalmatian seemed to enjoy the woman's presence and it made Seto even angrier. Why was she _rewarding_ him for bad behavior? It didn't settle with him.

She tsked him as he visibly reacted. "I told you not to get jealous."

At that he growled. There was no way that he was _jealous_. He was _offended_. Why couldn't she see that?

Footsteps sounded from the same direction the woman came from and a short man with black hair, wearing a similar white coat entered the room. He carried with him a small tray and he stopped in front of Seto's cage. There was a ledge near the entrance to the cage, which he set the tray on. Then he made a soothing noise and unlocked the cage; Seto snarled at him in warning.

He put on a pair of heavy gloves and didn't otherwise react. Seto barked. It was frustrating not to be able to communicate in any other manner.

"I'd probably be barking too if I had been in your situation," the man mused. He had a slight accent that Seto couldn't quite place. He reached into the cage and tried to soothingly pet Seto's neck. Seto snapped at the offending hand. He didn't want to be touched.

The man sighed. "It's ok, I'm not going to hurt you,"

Seto didn't care. He growled again.

"It must be scary here when all you've known is the streets," he commented. "You aren't used to people like me." He reached for the tray and selected a syringe, which Seto quickly recognized as containing a needle. He backed up and found himself whining. Pathetic.

But his instinctual fears didn't seem completely unfounded. The logical part of his brain wondered if they were going to put him down. He began to bark, his whole body fluffing up to make himself look bigger. He didn't even stop to think it would be unlikely that it would happen in front of the other dogs.

The man, however, didn't seem concerned. He expertly manipulated Seto into showing his flank, and then slid the needle in. Seto yelped in surprise and then howled. He wasn't going down without a fight!

The drug hit very quickly after that. The pain he had felt earlier completely disappeared, and he realized what it was; a painkiller. His eyes glazed over and his brain began to feel fuzzy. He had the nagging feeling something was supposed to be wrong, especially as the man patted his head and began to scratch him behind the ear. But it felt so good.

"That should have calmed him down," the doctor called to the other. "Less pain."

And Seto was reminded exactly what was wrong. He didn't want to be touched. Even if it was making him feel like the happiest dog in the world, he didn't want to be -oh that felt so good. He leaned into the scratching of his ear, whining a little when the hand was withdrawn.

"Good boy," the man responded, patting Seto's head before locking the cage again.

This didn't really upset Seto. He still felt happy, like anything that happened would be ok. Besides, he didn't have to worry about being touched by humans.

He found a blanket in the corner of his cage and lay down on it, sleepily closing his eyes.

* * *

When he woke it was to another sharp stinging and the same feeling of euphoria. He noticed some food had been added to the cage, and so when the hand was withdrawn this time, he sniffed at the brown mixture. Deciding it was edible, he grabbed a few pebbles and began to chew on them. They were a little harder than expected, but he was able to manage.

He somehow was enjoying the dry, grainy substance. Still, it had a weird after flavor, and he was starting to wonder if he was crazy for being ok with eating it. What the heck was this even made of? It wasn't until a few bites in that he realized the flavor was similar to the smell of a landfill or composting facility. Kind of sickly sour-sweet. The human part of his brain started to wonder what he was doing, but was overridden by the happy feeling of the drug. The nub on his tail tried to wag.

That sent shooting pain up his spine. He whined as he realized what he was doing and backed off from the food. Unobjectionally eating dog food, whatever had been placed in front of him, something that tasted like it should be garbage...

He lay down and made more displeased noises. He vaguely became aware of the pain subsiding and his quieting. He almost went back to sleep when another few sets of footsteps sounded. These were accompanied by two laughing voices, and Seto realized he recognized them.

"Thanks for getting us in Yug'," Jounouchi's obnoxious voice rang out. "I'm glad I get to see that dog I rescued."

The last thing Seto wanted was to see Jounouchi, so why did he feel so warm inside? He got up and crowded next to the bars.

A doctor was talking now. "He is doing better than when Mr. Moutou visited before," she explained. "But that likely has something to do with the drugs. He's been very calm since we began treating him."

The door opened revealing his rival and his rescuer, accompanied by the same blonde woman that he had encountered before. The woman opened the door to his cage and he panted a little as she placed a collar on him without initial objection. It wasn't until he realized exactly what was going on that he whined.

"It's ok," she cooed, attaching a leash. "You get to go to the big pen to play with these guys."

He sniffed Jou's hand sleepily as it was presented to him. His hand smelled like grease and automobiles and soap. It was an odd combination, but it made sense to Seto. He lowered his head and the hand softly pet the dog's head, as though that gave him permission. Again, Seto's responses were delayed, and he whined. The hand was immediately withdrawn.

He heard the dalmatian to his right whining and he glared at the other dog to the best of his ability. But he was too tired to keep it up for long. He went back to the corner to lay down, but was stopped by the leash.

"You get to go to a bigger pen," the woman stated, tugging a little towards the exit to the cage.

He whined a little again but followed along. Maybe they'd let him sleep in the other cage.

When he got there there were a mess of dog toys, the only bed being a pile of blankets in a corner. He immediately headed towards them once he was off his leash and locked in the room with the two duelists.

The woman disappeared and Jounouchi turned to Yugi. "You might be right, it might not be him," he said. "He's acting too friendly."

"It's not like he's missing, just acting weird," Yugi replied. "Maybe your dream was a warning?"

"Still, what if something else has his body and he is this dog?"

Seto's eyes were closed, but he continued listening to the pair talk, suddenly realizing they were talking about him. He wasn't missing? Someone was still operating as Seto Kaiba?

He growled a bit, but it was sleepy and not all that strong.

"We could always try to test it," Yugi suggested.

"I guess," Jounouchi said.

He approached Seto and knelt down. "Hey Seto," he said in a soft voice. "Can you bark once if that's your name?"

Seto stared at Jou in complete shock. How did he know?

Jou held out his hand and Seto sniffed it again, allowing Jou to pet him.

"This can't be him," Jou said. "Even drugged up, do you think Seto would let me of all people touch him?"

Yugi laughed. "So it must be a warning then."

Seto barked, once, slowly registering what was going on. But the pair seemed to have made up their mind.

"Still, adopting him seems like a good idea. It would be nice to not be the only mutt that escaped Hirutani," Jounouchi thought aloud.

Yugi nodded. "Hopefully they can figure out how to get him to be calm like this without the morphine."

Jou agreed and the pair fell silent. It wasn't long until Jou's soothing strokes were lulling Seto to sleep, and the world went quiet and happy again.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sorry that this is so short; I have been having writer's block adding more to it, and so I decided to end this chapter here. Feedback is always appreciated.**

The soreness wouldn't go away as Jounouchi walked down the street, hands in his pockets. He whistled, trying to ignore the pain. It would do him no good to look like the doctor was right about him staying in the hospital longer. Besides, he didn't want to worry Yugi. Not again.

He was dressed in his best: long black pants paired with a white button-up shirt and a maroon tie. He stopped at a flower stand, introducting himself and talking with the owner, a paper application in his hand as he left. It was the same at the sushi bar another street over, and at the supermarket a few streets down from that.

He probably only had time for one, especially with his studies, but he needed the money. The dog's medical care had turned out to be quite expensive, and Jou was not about to let Yugi foot the whole bill - not when it was basically his fault they were connected to the dog in the first place. Not that Yugi saw it like that.

He sighed. He would help that dog out. On the way home, he carefully calculated his availability, from his hands-on mechanic classes to his existing part-time job delivering newspapers. A holdover from high school, it didn't take much time, but also didn't make him much money.

He reached their shared apartment and unlocked the door, setting them on the hook as he shut the door behind him. Yugi's set was gone, so he didn't bother calling as he kicked off his shoes and put them in the closet, undressing on the way to his room. He deposited the clothes he'd kicked off in the hamper in the hallway, lounging in just his boxers.

Once comfortable, he sat at their shared desk, moving "Ancient Cultures of the World" from it's place in the center to the top of a stack of books to the left. He grabbed a pen and began filling out the first application.

A few hours later, a key jiggled in the lock and Yugi's distinctive frame entered the threshold. Rustling sounded as plastic bags were dropped, and Jounouchi looked up at his boyfriend through the doorway to the room.

"Hey Yug', whatcha got there?" he asked.

Yugi opened a bag as explanation, displaying a new collar (it matched his own), a pair of dishes decorated with little bones, and a few chew toys. Jounouchi raised an eyebrow. "I had no idea you got your collar at a pet shop, I always assumed it came from someplace selling dungeon attire."

Yugi laughed. "I had this custom made," he explained, pointing at his neck. Jounouchi raised an eyebrow, and Yugi's laugh filled the room again. "That happened to match."

Jounouchi joined in Yugi's laughter. "So what are we going to call him?" he asked, still smiling.

Yugi shrugged. "He still reminds me of Seto..."

"But do yah think Kaiba'd really let us name a dog after him?" he pointed out. "Besides, dogs are trainable. He'll be fine soon enough."

"Well what do you suggest?" Yugi asked.

"I 'unno, something tough like Rex? Or I can tell he'll be big, maybe Bear?"

"Bear's a good one," Yugi agreed.

"So that," Jou finalized. Yugi took out a sharpie and added Bear's name to both dishes, smiling as he disappeared from the threshold to set them out. He returned, slowly unpacking a dog bed, cans of wet food, dry food, more toys, a leash, a harness... Jou stood and began helping to arrange the things in the small apartment. "Have you talked to Mr. Usami about adding Bear to the rent?" he asked after a few moments of working in silence.

Yugi shook his head. "Not yet. But there is a pet policy. We should be good."

Jou nodded and moved back to the desk, picking up his cell. "I'll call."

After a few moments, the manager finished quoting a rent increase of nearly $100 per month, starting as soon as the dog entered the apartment. They also had to increase their security deposit. Messy handwriting scrawled the information on a sheet of paper, but he knew that the dog would be out of his budget. Jou's stomach sank. The rent increase seemed tollerable but the increase in security deposit, though a one-time fee, was far more than Jou could currently afford.

Though he had been watching the numbers over Jou's shoulder, Yugi learned much more from the downcast brown eyes meeting his own. Silently, he plucked the receiver from Jou's hand before the other could refuse the offer. "Thank you," he told the landlord. "We'll have the money to you tomorrow."

As the call ended, Jou's wide eyes were met with a reassuring smile. "The game shop is doing well. I can cover it." The returning smile didn't meet Jou's eyes, though he did nod in acknowledgement. Silently he vowed he would find a way to pay Yugi back.

Yugi's smile didn't dissipate as he inched closer to Jou with open arms. "It'll be ok," he assured, hands sliding accross the small of Jou's bare back.

His muscles relaxed and he returned the warm embrace. "I know Yug'. It doesn't mean I have to like it."

Standing on tiptoes, Yugi leaned to peck Jou on the lips. "No, but it doesn't mean you can't accept it."

Jounouchi nodded. He would, after all, accept Yugi's help in adopting the newest member of their family.


End file.
